In India, media gag order on rape trial lifted

In a welcome move, Indian media will finally be allowed to
cover court proceedings in the rape case that shook India's conscience. On
Friday, the Delhi High Court lifted a gag order on media covering the ongoing trial
of those accused of the gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student in Delhi in
December.

Prior to Friday's court order, reporters have had to rely on
limited details from lawyers involved in the case, which meant the information
was not always reliable.

"The lifting of the gag should translate to more scrutiny of
the investigation," Geeta Seshu, consulting editor for The Hoot, a South Asian media watchdog, told CPJ.

Friday's court order allows one journalist from each accredited
media organization to attend the trial. Reporters are prohibited from publishing
the name of the gang rape victim or witnesses, reports said.

In January, a lower court had invoked section 327 of India's
Code of Criminal Procedure, which forbids anyone unconnected to a case to be in
the courtroom during trial and makes it "unlawful for any person to print or
publish any matter in relation to any such proceedings, except with the
previous permission of the court." The statute rules out reporting even if the
media receive information on what happens in the courtroom from someone who was
present, according to The
New York Times.

The magistrate in the lower court said the presence of the
media and lawyers unconnected to the case was a distraction. "The courtroom is
jam-packed with a lot of disturbance from different nooks and corners," said
the judge, Metropolitan Magistrate Namrita Aggarwal, in New Delhi's Saket
district. "It has become completely impossible to carry out proceedings in this
manner."

That decision was challenged by lawyer Meenakshi Lekhi, who
said the hearings should be transparent. Critics like Lekhi argued that the press
had the right to report on a matter of public interest and the people had a
right to information on an issue that has gained worldwide attention.

In December, news of the gang rape sparked widespread
protests across India. Thousands demonstrated
on the streets of Delhi demanding the death penalty for the rapists. The outcry
led to a new
rape law.

Lifting the gag order could uncover critical details in a
case that has already seen several twists and turns, including the death of one
of the accused, Ram Singh, who was found hanged in prison earlier this month.

Sumit Galhotra is the research associate for CPJ's Asia program. He served as CPJ's inaugural Steiger Fellow and has worked for CNN International, Amnesty International USA, and Human Rights Watch. He has reported from London, India, and Israel and the Occupied Territories, and specializes in human rights and South Asia.